Data Matters
Helping schools reach Kids
Our business is helping schools use data to identify areas of opportunity
through data disaggregation, strategic planning and progress monitoring
Dr. Michael R Akes-Data and School Improvement Consultant
Over 25 years of school improvement experience
Data Captain at the Florida Department of Education, I worked with districts and schools all over the state to review their data systems and data, to identify opportunities for improvement, and to create action plans around those improvement opportunities. I spoke to over 3500 school and district personnel across the state regarding the importance of utilizing data to identify and intervene with students who are potential dropouts.
Turn Around Leader for School Improvement in the Madison County School System, I was responsible for working with principals and coordinating school improvement for the lowest performing schools in the Madison School District. Madison is a rural school district in North Florida with 60% of its students being minorities and 77% of the students received free or reduced lunch. I was responsible for coaching, monitoring, and evaluating principals regarding the organizational structure of the schools, instructional practices, school staffing and curriculum to insure school improvement. Through our improvement efforts, we improved the school grade in 2 of the 3 schools.
Assistant Superintendent of High Schools in Osceola County, I improved educational outcomes across the board. The Florida Department of Education recognized Osceola School District as one of only five Florida counties to improve in all seven-assessment areas including reading, mathematics, writing, social studies, and science
Chief Academic Officer of the Polk County Public Schools, I was instrumental at putting systems in place that helped increase the graduation rate from 68% to 82% and raised the district grade to a B for the first time. Florida Southern College recognized my contributions to the education of students of Polk County Florida by inducting me into the Florida Southern College Ring of Leaders.
Experience:
Data Captain Florida Department of Education
School Turnaround Leader for School Improvement
School Superintendent
Chief Academic Officer
Assistant Superintendent for High Schools
Senior Director of Assessment and Evaluation
Director of Human Resources and Transportation
Principal of multiple schools grades k-12
Teacher/Professor of mathematics and statistics 6th grade thru college
Education
Ed. D. - Educational Leadership, Nova Southeastern University
Administration Certification, University of Georgia
Ed.S.-Mathematics Education, University of Georgia
M.Ed.-Mathematics Education, University of Georgia
B.S. - Mathematics Education, Florida State University
Our approach to School Improvement
We work side-by-side with schools.
The process
1. Meet with schools and districts to identify goals, main areas of focus or concern.
2. Together we determine the scope of work.
3. We role up our sleeves and get started determining what data or artifacts are needed.
4. We gather and disaggregate the data, looking for trends and creating visualizations that are problem solving ready.
5. We problem solve with leadership teams creating improvement plans that include smart goals and progress monitoring.
6. Support teams in the implementation of improvement plans.
7. Support teams in progress monitoring and adjustments when determined necessary.
Data Presentations
Support we provide to Schools and Districts
Data Disaggregation of state data: Disaggregation of the state summative test data at the district and school level. This disaggregation includes an Excel spreadsheet and PowerPoint that is school improvement planning ready.
Data Disaggregation and program evaluation: Disaggregation of school and district data and program evaluation in areas such as reviewing progress monitoring data by student group, equity in access to programs such as AP and CTE, effects of attendance on student achievement, effects of mobility on student groups, student grades, discipline referrals/incidents by student groups/subgroups, and effects of teacher turn over
Virtual 3-hour data review session: This session is a review of the school’s state summative test data with the school’s leadership team. We will review all tested areas for all student groups and identify areas that the school might consider addressing in their school improvement plan. This session includes an Excel spreadsheet, a PowerPoint and the findings for the school that would be school improvement plan ready.
Virtual 1 hour coaching session: These are school improvement/data coaching session for a principal. During these sessions we discuss areas of concern for the principal and best instructional leadership practices. If needed, a yearlong coaching plan can be developed. This is a great strategy to help support new or struggling principals.
On-site Support: Coaching and collaborating with district and school teams on-site to review data and create systems for improvement.
On-site facilitated one-day data digging training: This training is intended to help school and district staff dig into state and district data in preparation of writing their school improvement plan. The size of the group should be no more than 30 consisting of 5 schools with 4 to 6 people per school. Each school’s state disaggregated data is included in this training.
Testimonials
Dr. Belynda L. Pinkston Program Coordinator, McNair Scholars Program Lecturer, College of Education and Human Services Testimonial for Dr. Michael Akes and Data Matters I had the opportunity to work with Dr. Michael Akes in the School District of Osceola. Dr. Akes specialized in helping schools delve into their students’ achievement data. The work with Dr. Akes and his curriculum team centered on working with the school leadership teams on how to dissect student assessment data and how to use that data to drive instructional practice to improve student achievement. Strategies employed by Dr. Akes, and his team included instructional walk-throughs, gallery walks, and fostering collaborative PLC’s. Dr. Akes is a skilled instructional leader who has the expertise and experience to guide your school’s journey to taking a deep dive to review student data, as well as examine professional practices being implemented by all school stakeholders. I strongly encourage any district who is committed to bringing about change in the area of student achievement to utilize the services of Dr. Michael Akes. Respectfully, Dr. Belynda L. Pinkston Program Coordinator, McNair Scholars Program Lecturer, College of Education and Human Services Pinkstonb@uwosh.edu 920 424-7306
Ms. Tarlisha Wayne Senior Director of Special Education Anchorage School District Testimonial for Dr. Michael Akes and Data Matters I had the opportunity to work with Dr. Michael Akes in Alaska. Dr. Akes was the Senior Director of Assessment and Evaluation, while I was the Senior Director of Special Education. Dr. Akes has the ability to use data to highlight areas that need improvement. He has experience at both the building and district levels in that he understands where to look for different data elements, how to make visualizations that motivate change, and then how to present the data concisely, so people understand it. Specifically, Dr. Akes was able to show the achievement gap between students receiving special education services and other student demographics in the areas of reading and math. He then looked at the current grades and was able to show the disproportionate number of students receiving special education services that were failing in comparison to others. Another project that Dr. Akes and I worked on together was in the area of transportation. Dr. Akes and I were assigned tasks to find ways to improve transportation efficiency. To accomplish this, we looked at everything from the Individualized Education Program (IEP) process and programming to inclusive practices within transportation. While we worked together, Dr. Akes and I would share common and differing perspectives to guide our collaborative efforts to support student achievement and improve the district outcomes. Dr. Akes is passionate about student achievement, school improvement, and data-driven decision-making. I was amazed at how there was not an area that Dr. Akes could not find a way to analyze. One of his sayings was, "if you measure it and monitor it, it will move." Dr. Akes is one of a kind. His efforts to support the most complex situations to find solutions that benefit student success are spearheaded by his knowledge, unique skill set, flexibility, and passion for educating students. Respectfully, Ms. Tarlisha Wayne Senior Director of Special Education Anchorage School District wayne_tarlesha@asdk12.org 907-742-4236
Dr. Melissa Riviotta Principal Testimonial for Dr. Michael Akes and Data Matters In 2017 I was appointed as principal of Griffin Elementary. At the time, Griffin was in turnaround and had not earned a school grade higher than a “D” since 2011, and was currently rated as an “F” for the past two years. I knew that I would have a challenging road ahead of me and was eager to dive into the school data to see what my course of action would be. Dr. Michael Akes was the Chief Academic Officer of my district at that time. I knew that Dr. Akes had extensive experience in data analysis and school improvement, and I reached out to him to provide some support and guidance. Dr. Akes worked alongside of me to explain how school grades are calculated and helped me to disaggregate my school data using DecisionEd, our district data information system. He also provided me valuable feedback on my school improvement plan and arranged to have Instructional Rigor Walks at my school so we could calibrate our observations and create a plan of action. At the end of my first year at Griffin, learning gains in language arts increased by 17% and 9% in math and Griffin increased school grade to a “D”. Dr. Akes continued to work with me during the 2018/2019 school year. During this school year there was a heavy focus on monitoring our subgroups, as well as helping to guide my decisions in regard to my staffing plan, making sure that I was strategic in placing my teachers in the content and grade level to continue making progress. Dr. Akes guided me as I made adjustments during the course of the year based on the progress monitoring data. At the end of the school year, language arts proficiency increased by 14% and math increased by 8%. The most notable success of that year was a 14% reduction of students scoring level 1 in language arts and a 8% reduction in students scoring a level 1 in math. I am grateful for having had the opportunity to learn from and work with Dr. Akes during my tenure at Griffin Elementary. His extensive knowledge of school improvement strategies and data analysis helped me to become a more sound leader and to develop my skills making data-driven decisions. More importantly, working with Dr. Akes helped to ensure that the students of my school would continue to make academic gains. Sincerely, Dr. Melissa Riviotta
Ms. Yanelys Ballard Assistant Principal Dr. Michael Akes has provided insurmountable training on not just how to pull data and analyze it, but what next steps needs to be taken to effectively move schools, a crucial piece many consultants fail to deliver. He has the ability to analyze multiple pieces of information and identify the underlying causes of low performance. He utilizes our school’s data management system and trains our staff on how to pull data, what to look for and how to implement the Problem-Solving Framework to impact change. His trainings have long lasting effects and instrumental in building the skillset of our staff to continue using his techniques maintaining a data driven culture. Our district wide graduation data started at 78% prior to his data trainings and continued to improve to above 90%! Source https://www.fldoe.org/accountability/data-sys/edu-info-accountability-services/pk-12-public-school-data-pubs-reports/archive.stml I highly recommend Dr. Michael Akes, he will not sugar coat your data and will walk you through the process on the “Next Steps” to have long lasting results in a data driven culture! Ms. Yanelys Ballard Previous Director of High School Osceola School District
